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The current stage scene is smaller than the original, and is also smaller than the library scene that existed in SDatHC and BBoBH. I wish they could've scaled down the animatronics and made the room feel bigger.

I love the boiler room scene the best as it reminds me the most of the old scene

Don't worry, guys, they updated the app! That ought to take care of it, right?

Possibly, but closing loopholes helps maintain pricing integrity. That, along with the chain seeming to understand that their products are priced way too low, is refreshing to see after too many years of what seemed like a "race to the bottom" strategy of giving away the gate.

So, on August 9th, my son and I made a road trip for Stricker's Grove. It's rare for us to have a free weekend when he plays soccer year round. Plus, with their limited hours where they are open to the public, it makes a visit there difficult to achieve. So, we arrived at the park around 12:20pm. The park is open from 12-8pm. We did not realize until we arrived, that the rides operate from 1-4pm and 5-8pm. Being that this park is pretty small, I agree in giving the employees a dinner break for an hour. The 1st rode we lined up for is their wood coaster, the Tornado. Since this was going to be my 100th coaster, I really did not want the Teddy Bear coaster to be my 100th. Tornado was built in house and in one particular place on the ride, it was apparent that it was. Still, it was a good coaster. Next, we walked over to my 101st, the Teddy Bear. Amazingly, this kids wood coaster was pretty darn good. They had a small collection of flat rides, including a Tip Top, a Rainbow, a Pirate Ship, a carousel, a junior whip, a boat ride and one other that I cannot recall. My biggest regret of the day was stopping to eat lunch before we arrived. We walked through the front gate and there were people that were grilling food right there. It smelled so good. Also of note, the park gives out free drinks and parking is also free. I took my son over after the Teddy Bear to ride the Tip Top. I had not been on one of those since I was a kid and Camden Park had one. Between the 2 of us, we had our car spinning insanely fast the entire ride cycle. We were both laughing so hard. He marveled at how the car had no restraint of any sort. I told him how back in my day, we rode by the seat of our pants. Next, we walked over to the Electric Rainbow. I also had not been on one of these since Camden Park had one. Great fun. He also remarked how the only safety measure was a chain in front of you. After that, we walked to the front of the park to get a drink. We then proceeded to the miniature golf course, which was also free. I started off pretty strong and joked about how they needed to size me up for my gold jacket. I spoke too soon as I performed poorly later on and he wound up winning by 6. After that, we took another spin on the Electric Rainbow, the Tornado and the Tip Top. We decided to head home after that. We had not planned on staying but a few hours anyway. The tickets were $22/person, so what a great value for a small park like Stricker's Grove. On a final note, I it is of note that this park is mostly a picnic grove with a few rides. Outside food is also welcomed and I saw some had brought their own grills. All in all, just a great park, with a quaint atmosphere and good employees. If you ever get the chance to go there, it's something you don't want to miss.

I'm just happy that all the effects were working during my visit. On the first ride Larry #1 (Are you ready to be an usher) didn't work and that dialogue was missing but on the second ride about 45 minutes later he was working perfectly so idk what was up the first time.

I mean someone is hiding in the old boo Blasters armor suit in the prop room. Far cry from the Centurion but I figured that was what they were trying to reference there

Tip Top is possibly my favorite ride in the park, so I'm glad you enjoyed it! The world needs more of that ride type and I wish a manufacturer would start producing them again.

Color me (not at all) shocked- nothing new and no additions. That game show thing is a fine pre-show for a real show at the bandstand. As it is, why even bother with building a set? This is pathetic.

Why isn’t the park posting an advisory on its social media channels?

So I know we were discussing Tony Clark and his Regional PR duties in another thread, but this might fit better here. Someone posted a fun little I-Spy a Gold Pass game to the Cedar Point page on Facebook that included the following image that I will let you all guess about before you read on. This photo, again posted a little over an hour ago, is from 2008. In it you can see Son of Beast still standing and operating with a sizeable queue line (no loop though), Firehawk and Vortex are still standing, Nickelodeon orange and green are splattered across what is now Planet Snoopy and Camp Snoopy, and Diamondback has just barely begun to take over the former Swan Lake. I personally find this photo to be really cool, but it is very much a bad photo to have used due to its age. Nobody could find an aerial photo of the park from after 2020? A lot has been added to and removed from the park in those eighteen years. I brought up Tony Clark because I have to wonder how someone (presumably) under his department could have let a photo this old get through to being posted as if it was representative of the current park. (Here's one of the jokes I've been thinking after I saw this photo: "Haha look! I can see a whole lot more trees and no overflowing trash cans". I never claimed it'd be a good joke.)

I don’t have to be there to know exactly what’s going on. People send me photos, what’s open, what’s closed every day. I have no ill will towards the park, either. False narrative on your end. I want the park to do well. I want the guest experience to be top tier.

When it comes to season-pass value, the lowest price doesn’t always mean the best deal. Dollywood, Holiday World and Kennywood continue to stand out to me because of what guests get beyond rides: friendly guest service, clean and well-maintained parks, strong seasonal events and an overall sense that the guest experience matters. There’s also something to be said for integrity—delivering an experience that matches what was promised and making visitors feel valued after they’ve spent their money.

I didn't experience it, but I do remember hearing about that. It's cool that over 20 years later Jason Voorhees makes his return to Kings Island.

The one in the (then) Paramount Theater?

What’s changed is having people that know the difference between storytelling and messaging in the PR and social positions at KI and within Six Flags. You can tell the people doing it now don’t really know the park or their audience with the content that gets published. Disney Parks and Universal still do it as they’ve done it for years. They create emotional content, not marketing content. Disney and Universal routinely post content that makes people feel something: Family moments. Character interactions. Guest reactions. Behind-the-scenes stories. Cast/Team Member spotlights. Nostalgia. Vacation memories. Kings Island and many Six Flags parks often default to “The park opens at 10.” “Buy tickets now.” “Here’s a ride photo.” “Food item available this weekend.” When I was running social media, people knew there was a person behind the account. The Beast Groundhog Day tradition is a perfect example. It wasn’t an advertisement. It was a personality-driven tradition. Today Kings Island and many other Six Flags accounts feel corporate and interchangeable. Disney and Universal make fans the stars. Look at Disney and Universal feeds: Guest photos. Fan videos. Influencer content. User-generated content. Vacation stories Disney even has dedicated influencer and creator programs built around sharing guest experiences. Kings Island and Six Flags needs that. Kings Island and other Six Flags parks now operate as if every piece of content has to come from the marketing department. The smartest social strategy today is letting fans tell your story for you. They are part of the conversation. Universal is particularly good at this. When something is trending, they join in. When fans joke, they joke back. When someone posts something funny, they engage. They feel like a participant in the community. Kings Island and other Six Flags accounts feel like a digital billboard. Disney and Universal are masters of teasers, construction updates, countown content, behind-the-scenes reveals, and sneak peeks. Kings Island used to be. Epic Universe is the perfect example. Fans were invested years before opening because Universal constantly fed the conversation. Kings Island and Six Flags parks often go from announcement, construction photo, opening day. There’s no story arc anymore like there used to be. (Scroll back to Banshee and Mystic Timbers teasers, announcement, construction updates, ride opening, and post-opening content.) The biggest difference is Disney and Universal tell those stories constantly. Kings Island and Six Flags often tell people what they can buy, what time the park opens, and what ride is operating. One builds a community; the other shares information. Bottom line: PR and social media in the industry hasn’t changed. Kings Island changed from what they had successfully been doing, which was taking a page from Disney and Universal.